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Memorial Keepers(1)
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Stephanie Lyon
Janet Rogers
July 2nd, 1944 - November 21st, 2020
July 2nd, 1944 - November 21st, 2020
Janet was an enormous presence at the Merrimack River Feline Society. She was so many things to all of us and dedicated her time, home, heart, and assistance to MRFRS at every turn, without fail, for nearly 20 years. As volunteer coordinator for many years, she welcomed hundreds of volunteers to the MRFRS family. Janet was there to celebrate your successes and she was there when times were tough if you needed a shoulder to lean on or a listening ear. She touched the lives of so many of us and played a central role making sure the shelter ran without a hitch.
Janet saved every single volunteer record since the day she started, as MRFRS’s unofficial archivist. Her handwriting graces many labels at the shelter on cabinets and storage bins at our admin office and serves as a daily reminder of her warm presence and organizational skills. Janet was everything from “laundry queen” to lead cat check-in person at the rabies clinic to our “recycling manager”, bringing paper and cans to the transfer station. She was a reliable on-call volunteer for any local last-minute needs. She helped out at countless events like our yard sales, Fur Ball Galas and the Strut for Strays.
Perhaps the most important legacy she leaves behind is her willingness and dedication to caring for old, sick, and injured cats that needed a home. She was always there for the most compromised cats when they needed her most and she loved each and every one of them with her whole heart. She adopted and permanently fostered over 70 vulnerable cats for MRFRS over the years. In that, she was a true role model for all of us.
When Janet passed away unexpectedly, she was living at home with 12 of her beloved cats. Each was placed in a new home by MRFRS where they are safe, loved, and attended to—exactly what Janet would have wanted. Losing Janet was an enormous loss to our community. The people she touched and the cats she gave a soft place to land will never forget her and her dedication to caring for the most needy cats will live on through all of us.
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Tributes
Share a favorite memory, send condolences, and honor Janet’s life with a heartfelt message.
Donna Angell
Jan was such a kind and caring person and a very good friend for many years. I admired her so much for her devotion and love of her feline friends. She’ll always remain in my heart!
Karen Rainford
I met Janet in 2005 when I walked into the shelter and asked if I could help. She quickly set me up with an application and invited me to stay and hang with the kitties. I started on the front desk the following week. There are soooo many wonderful stories I could share, but my absolute favorite that I will never forget was how Janet won over the heart of a feral, Gilda who lived ontop of the cupboards. It's a long beautiful love story that developed over years that I don't have the space for here. Let's just say that this young lady (Gilda) who's feet you never saw touch the floor, eventually got adopted all thanks to Janet and her hard work and dedication. Gilda would actually wake up out of a dead sleep when she heard Janet's voice as she walked in the shelter and would start yelling at her to be fed. It was truly amazing to see. I have tears in my eyes just remembering it. It was beautiful to witness. Janet would come in on her days off just to feed Gilda because she wouldn't come out for anyone else. Eventually, she came down and was a "cat" (sort of) Soooo beautiful. She got adopted by someone who had another "aloof" kitty at home. ❤ Gosh, I could type so much more about those two. I know Janet was special and there are so many things I could say, but I really wanted to share that Gilda story with everyone, even if it was abbreviated. Rest easy, my friend. You are truly missed by all the 4-legged fur babies and the 2-legged human ones as well. You were an Angel living among us, now you get to guide us from above ❤
Sharon Rogers
This is just so lovely. I will read all the comments later for now I am just crying. She was the most generous person. She made me family and was a close & dear friend. I sit here with Mr.Snuff one of my 3 black cats from Merrimack River shelter. I miss her.
Melissa Witherspoon
Janet’s Heart of Gold is missed by all of us that had her in our lives. I am so fortunate to have known her. Her continued love and devotion to a mission larger than herself did not go unnoticed. I miss you Janet.
Brit Fox Hover
Janet was one of the very first people I met at MRFRS and she taught me so much of what I know. We always laughed about the fact that we both had the same birthday, the same middle name, and went to the same college. Janet's passing leaves a huge void at the shelter, it will never be quite the same without her. It is really still quite difficult to imagine that she is gone and I think the very best thing we can do in Janet's honor is to continue the work we do helping the kitties who need us most.
Steph Lyon
Janet onboarded me as a volunteer in 2013 and trained me to do cat care at the shelter. Over the years, Janet has done so many kind, helpful and thoughtful things for me and I know many others. I think of her almost every day and I will never forget her.
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